Almost a couple of months have passed since a member of the British royal family embarrassed himself, but never fear! Along comes Prince Charles! The bumbling heir to the throne has abruptly withdrawn from the Royal Film Performance of new gritty London picture Brick Lane, scheduled for November. Subsequently, the film gala has been canceled.
"It's simply another monumental royal cock-up," says a source at Ruby Films, the makers of the film.
When Brick Lane was first chosen for the black-tie Royal Film Performance, the critics lauded the Windsors for selecting something edgier than the usual celluloid fare. (Previous selections include a string of James Bond movies, The Parent Trap, and Titanic.) Based on Monica Ali's best-selling 2003 novel, which depicts the struggle of a recent Bangladeshi immigrant to assimilate into British society, Brick Lane infuriated denizens of East London's real-life Brick Lane. Protests by residents and traders claiming the film would portray London's Bangladeshi community in a bad light led producer Alison Owen, Gwyneth Paltrow's best friend, to abandon plans to shoot on location in the Brick Lane.